During tonight’s Celtics-76ers game, Mickael Pietrus drove the lane and fell awkwardly on his back and neck. The green-and-white’s reserve swing lay motionless for several minutes and was throwing up before being removed from the court on a stretcher.

There is good news: Celtics coach Doc Rivers told reporters Pietrus had passed several medical tests and was being kept overnight in hospital.

Watch the fall (it’s a bit of gruesome) and get at HoopsVibe News with thoughts in the comment box below.

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Larry Brown has burned more bridges than a pyromaniac serving a five year bid at Sing, Sing prison in upstate New York.

Brown is the nomad coach. When the going gets tough, he gets going. Or when he thinks the grass is greener on the other side, he goes to the other side.

Just ask the Charlotte Bobcats and Los Angeles Clippers or the Detroit Pistons and New York Knicks or the Philadelphia 76ers and those same Pistons.

Of course, this doesn't stop Brown from demanding his players 'Play The Right Way'. It doesn't matter that he's doing the opposite in front of them.

Despite the hypocrisy, Brown can teach youngsters. Unfortunately, the Boston Celtics are a veteran crew. Old heads like Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce won’t want to deal with the overbearing, impatient, and frustrating Brown.

Celtics head coach ‘Doc’ Rivers won’t be particularly enthused with Brown’s idiosyncrasies either -especially if he’s only using the defensive coordinator gig to showcase himself for a head coaching job.

Rivers and the Celtics should avoid Brown. He’ll burn them like he has so many other teams.

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: The Detroit Pistons aren’t kind on coaches –but I suppose new sideline boss Lawrence Frank is aware of this.

Whether because of Executive Joe Dumars or the team’s temperamental players, the Pistons have chewed up and spit out seven coaches in eleven years. Many of those coaches left on bad terms; a few had awful experiences.

Frank knows this. He also knows what he has –or doesn’t have. The Pistons are a mediocre team, with several players who may resist his defense-first approach.

Still, Frank has one of the NBA’s thirty head coaching gigs. After getting fired by the New Jersey Nets and spending time as an assistant with Doc Rivers' Boston Celtics, Frank is back in ‘The Big Chair’.

Tracy McGrady heading to the Boston Celtics sounds good, however, there's the risk the former superstar won't accept less minutes, less shots, and less touches with Doc Rivers' squad.

After all, McGrady still, to some extent, believes he's 'T-Mac', the seven-time All-Star and two-time scoring champ. Last year McGrady, despite being past-his-prime, acted like a spoiled first-option and undermined Detroit Pistons coach John Kuester.

Such behaviour would never fly in Boston. He'd have to check his ego. He'd have to sit and watch his peers –veteran stars like Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce – play. And he'd have to come off-the-bench.

In short, he'd have to become a professional. Nothing else would be tolerated by Rivers and GM Danny Ainge.

Of course, there is an alternative. McGrady can sign with another rebuilding squad and try parlaying the extra minutes and extra shots into a final, decent-money contract.

That would mean more meaningless basketball, though. In fourteen seasons, McGrady has never made the second round –ever. There was the choke-job with Orlando; there were tears in Houston.

Hopefully, McGrady has pride. Hopefully, he considers Boston. Hopefully, he becomes a professional –if he signs. It's not too late to salvage what he can.

When asked about the level of criticism LeBron received, Rivers was surprisingly sympathetic: "Some of it was self-inflicted, some of it inflicted by everyone else. After Game 3, someone asked LeBron, 'When are you going to step up'?. The problem is that he answered, when he should have said 'Go screw yourself'."

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Doc Rivers is comfortable in his skin. LeBron James is not.

So Rivers, when absolutely necessary, can tell off the media without worrying about consequences or repercussions. Things usually work out for the Boston Celtics’ personable sideline boss.

James, however, is different. His image has fallen faster than the American real estate market. Everything he says has consequences and/or repercussions. Lately, things haven’t been working out for the Miami Heat’s superstar.

What’s the answer?

Well, James has to find better people to support him. For instance, his media/communications guy can’t be his boy from an old AAU team.

James needs a world-class PR firm by his side 24/7. He needs to be retrained on interacting with the media. And he needs to do this now.

Finally, he needs to reflect and think on what’s important: his family and basketball. Hopefully, gaining perspective will allow James to again feel comfortable with himself.

“‘Well, it was more not that the trust went away, the know-how went away,” Rivers said. “The continuity went away. That’s what the trade affected more than anything. Obviously, Perk was great to our team and all that. But it was more that you have new guys playing different positions and you had a guy who could literally reach back into a playbook and throw out something that was three or four years old and they all knew it, when Perk was there. ‘I would wait until after the year is over. I’ll put it that way. I do think Jeff Green has a chance to be a starter for us in the future and a hell of a basketball player. And Krstic can help. But making that trade at the time we made that trade, that made it very tough for us. And not only that, we added other pieces as well that we tried to fit in.

“Doc Rivers has agreed to a five-year, $35 million contract extension to remain coach of the Boston Celtics, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.LinkHoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: You don’t need to be a Johnny Kemp fan to know Doc Rivers ‘just got paid’.
Instead of cashing a two-week cheque for minimum wage, the personable sideline boss is getting $35 million over five years to coach the Boston Celtics.
There are several storylines worth noting with this development:
First, Rivers had always taken the summer to decide whether he wanted to continue coaching. It was a year-by-year process. And the Celtic faithful were on pins-and-needles/shamrocks-and-clovers to know if he was staying.
Well, no more uncertainty. Rivers is the Celtics’ man for the long-term, and vice-versa.
Remember, the team is on the hook for the full $35 million if they fire Rivers. And Rivers is giving up the chance to be a basketball dad and watch son Austin start his college career.
Second, many thought Rivers’ future was tied to The Big Three. He would leave the Celtics, or perhaps coaching, when Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce called it a day.
The term of this deal means he’ll stick around long after Allen, Garnett, and Pierce retire. He’ll be part of the rebuilding process and clearly likes the chips he already has in Jeff Green and Rajon Rondo.
Third, Rivers must be comfortable with current Celtics GM Danny Ainge. And he must be convinced Ainge will be in the front office for a while.
After all, Rivers is Ainge’s guy. Always has been, too. Even when the Celtics were a perpetual lottery team and Rivers was seen as a guy who struggled with ‘Xs’ and ‘Os’.
So Rivers is staying. He’ll be the constant for the green-and-white. Expect the Celtics to shake-up their core and make changes after falling to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference semi-finals.
--Oly Sandor.Got thoughts? Well, get at HoopsVibe News in the comment box below.

“LeBron and Wade are going to be LeBron and Wade,” Doc Rivers said. “They were great before the series, they’ll be great during it and they’ll be great after it and this summer when you’re talking about it you’ll say LeBron and Wade are great players. That’s not going to chance. But when Bosh plays great, then their team plays great. He’s a key guy for them.”

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Chris Bosh has taken ‘heat’ for his play this year.

As LeBron James and Dwyane Wade meshed together seamlessly for Miami, Bosh often struggled to find his way on both ends of the court.

At times, the Three Kings looked more like Two Kings and a Baron. Or, in an ode to Charlie Sheen, Two and a half Kings.

Make no mistake about it, as Bosh goes so goes the Heat. A focused, active CB4 gives the Heat a third option. He establishes an inside-outside game and punishes defenses for cheating on James and Wade.

While an unfocused Bosh makes the Heat a predictable, two-horse squad. And it’s too much to expect James and Wade to carry the offense come playoff time.

Not surprisingly, Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers has identified Bosh as the key. The green-and-white know they can’t stop James and Wade from ‘getting-theirs’, but the lanky left-hander is a different story.

The stakes are high. If Bosh plays well, the Heat likely win. If Bosh plays poorly, the Celtics likely win.

It’s not just about this year, though. If Bosh performs and the Heat advance, the Three Kings experiment will continue. If he does not perform and the Heat loses, he may be traded for cap space/depth.

The upcoming Heat-Celtics series could well define Bosh. Is he a superstar or a very good player? At least, we’ll get an answer.

With Perkins gone, everything changed for the Celtics and they knew it: the toughness, the tenacity, the presence in the post. “He was tough,” Rose said. “We could defend on someone that was big. He was really tough to go around. … They’re different.”

Different doesn’t mean better. It means diminished. The Bulls beat the Celtics 44-22 in the paint, beat them badly on the boards, too. They assailed the Celtics the way the Celtics used to assail everyone else. “We know we can beat them,” Rose flatly said.

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: On the one hand, a lockout may help the Boston Celtics re-sign their brilliant coach Glen ‘Doc’ Rivers.

A work stoppage would let Rivers spend additional time in Florida with his children, who are competitive athletes. The hope is he would take the extra time to get refreshed and refocused, and ink another one-year contract with the Celtics.

The key word is hope.

On the other hand, a lockout may hurt the Celtics’ ability to keep Rivers. Suppose there’s a prolonged work stoppage. Kevin Garnett and/or Ray Allen could retire. Yes, The Big Ticket and Jesus Shuttlesworth could cash their 501K and call it a career.

Would Rivers return to a Celtics squad without Garnett and/or Allen?

After all, Rivers has his money. And he seems awfully content relaxing with family in and around Florida.

Suppose the Heat fall short of expectations. As much as he loves the spotlight, oil-slick GM Pat Riley probably won’t leave the executive suite for the sideline.

The Heat needs a coach for the long term –like Rivers. So expect Riley to give Rivers, a master at handling superstars, a blank cheque. And Rivers would have to choose between the aging Celtics and the superstar-laden Heat.

According to two league sources, Perkins has already turned down a Celtics offer that is bound by the CBA’s current restrictions — a contract extension worth slightly less than $30 million over four years, which reflects the currently mandated contract limits of a 20-percent increase and a four-year maximum. Perkins, represented by agent Arn Tellem, has opted to wait until he is an unrestricted free agent, when even in an unpredictable market he has a chance of commanding far more.

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: On the one hand, Kendrick Perkins is making a business decision. On the other hand, that business decision could take him from the Boston Celtics and put him with, say, the Miami Heat.

Reports indicate the rugged five-man rejected the Celtics four-year, $30 million contract offer because it reflected the standard 20% raise as mandated by the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Even with the league’s financial landscape bound to change with a new CBA and a potential work stoppage looming, Perkins stands to earn more as an unrestricted free agent.

Will he be making that extra paper with the Celtics, though?

Every team needs a defensive anchor, including the star-studded Heat. Perkins would clog the middle for LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, while relieving Chris Bosh of his defensive anchor duties.

However, the tipping point could be Coach Doc Rivers. Rivers and Perkins have a good relationship, which could continue down south.

If the Heat fails to win the 2011 championship, Coach Erik Spoelstra will be replaced, and the personable Rivers would be the top candidate for the gig. And he could use his relationship with Perkins to lure him to South Beach.

Yes, the business of basketball works in funny ways. And it could see Perkins and Rivers together with the rival Heat next season.

"I'll never forget," he said, "Michael Finley told me right after dinner after Game Seven, 'Make sure in training camp, you need to establish yourself.' I took that with me through the whole summer -- 'Establish yourself. You need to be a force to be reckoned with.' "

Finley stressed to Davis that the Celtics could run the ball through him in the second unit this season. "You're capable enough to be doing that," the veteran said. Davis let the advice sink in. Then, it clicked.

Link
HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Glen Davis should drop the ‘Baby’ from his ‘Big Baby’ moniker. Instead, he should just be ‘Big’.

This year, Davis has been ‘Big’ off the bench. His jumper has been ‘Big’. His post play has been ‘Big’. And his focus has been ‘Big’.

Instead of getting distracted by the hoopla surrounding his Boston Celtics, Davis has shown a razor focus, averaging a steady 12 points and six rebounds off the bench.

This is hardly a surprise. Davis has always had the skill-set to be a very good player. He’s surprisingly quick for his size. And he possesses world class hands.

Davis’ improved play gives Doc Rivers’ squad a deadly second unit. And he could be difference between the Celtics winning and losing another championship.
--Oly Sandor.

Shaquille O'Neal is averaging 22.7 minutes per game and has provided the Celtics everything they could have hoped through 16 games. A key to his resurgence is that he arrived without his Shaq-Fu attitude. While every superstar's impact eventually fades, it is up to the star to determine how he wants his career to conclude. Some never recognize that their skills have eroded, while others decide to reinvent themselves as someone who can help their team despite diminishing talents. O'Neal said he decided to move to Sudbury to avoid the allure of the Boston nightlife and concentrate fully on basketball. During his postgame interview, two of his sons were milling around the locker room, soaking in the new environment. In his younger days, O'Neal said he would have capitalized on the Friday nightlife after a victory, especially with the weekend off. Not now.Link

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Older and wiser.

In the twilight of his career, Shaquille O’Neal appears to be avoiding the pitfalls of his youth. No nightclubs. No attitude; just a team-first approach to helping the Boston Celtics.

It’s working, too. O’Neal is averaging 13 points and 7 rebounds in 22 minutes. He’s also hitting a scorching 69% of his attempts from the floor.